The Last of the Dragons-Set 1

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      We stepped out from the trees, struck with the sight of the endless ocean, coupled with the soothing sound of the waves rolling up on the shore before receding back. Birds flew around over head calling out to each other as the dove at the water. The wind was stronger now that it was unobstructed by the usual trees that made up the endless forest. 

"Well, we're here. Now what?" Amy asked.

"We travel north until we either find Doron, or die looking." I replied.

"Well, we aren't going to find anything if we just stand here. Let's go. We've got a lot of ground to cover." Tahli said.

"Keep an eye out for predators. Walking along the beach gives them an easy way to corner us. They can use the water to trap us. If something comes at us, we have to kill it off." Amy said.

We made our way down the beach, gazing thoughtlessly at the endless ocean on one side, to the wall of trees sitting atop the sand dunes to the other. Even though we were surrounded by sounds from all sides, it felt like we were in a void of silence the entire time. I don't know if it was out of fear, or just simply the stress of the unknown, but I couldn't help but feel like we were walking into a death trap.

That Evening 

"It seems like it goes on forever. It doesn't look like we've travelled at all since we reached the beach." Amy said with a tired pant.

"Well, we aren't getting much further today. The sun is going down, and we need to find some shelter for the night." I said.

"Where can we sleep? We're on a beach." Bailey asked.

"We'll camp on the edge of the trees. The view will be stunning. I replied.

The four of us slowly made our way up the steep sand dunes until we reached the trees. I grabbed hold of a low hanging branch to pull myself up, before helping the others up one at a time. The sun was slowly setting after a largely uneventful day, with the exception of the mornings violent events. The air was once again changing from warm to cool, now with the chilling breeze whipping off the ocean steadily. Slowly, the stars took over the otherwise clear, black sky, reflecting perfectly off of the oceans surface as the waves crashed against the shore, almost out of sight with the odd exception of moons light giving them away.

"Do you really think he'll accept you back?" Tahli asked.

I sighed, knowing that I would have to admit that I wasn't sure.

"No. I don't know for sure. But we all know there is no other option at this point. It's a risk we have to take." I said.

We sat around a small fire, huddling close to keep warm. Bailey had suddenly fallen asleep and collapsed to the ground, but Amy, Tahli and I weren't sharing her feelings of exhaustion.

"What are you going to do when we find him?" Amy asked.

"I'm not sure. Assuming he doesn't kill us, i'll have to find a way to convince him to rejoin us. Once we have him on our side, the others that are still alive will follow him." I said.

"And do you have any idea how you're going to get him back?" Tahli asked.

"That, I don't know. That depends on how he reacts to us when he sees us. If he's aggressive, we have more important things to worry about in the moment." I replied.

"Perhaps Magar would be slightly easier to regain the trust of." Amy added.

I gave her a glance.

"That may be so, but she's not the one with the power." I replied.

"She's the closest dragon bonded with Doron. If we have her, it may be easier to get him. She could help us get there fast as well." Amy responded.

"If we can find her, Bailey would have to be the one to approach her." Tahli said.

"Well, based off of how she's been acting lately, i'd say that won't be to difficult to convince her of. She misses her dragon more than any of us. That has to mean something." I said.

I lightly brushed Bailey's hair to reveal her sleeping face, before placing a kiss on her cheek. Amy gave a slight smile, and even Tahli seemed to show some emotion at the sight.

"Did I just see Tahli smile?" I said jokingly.

"No, a hard ass like you? I didn't know you were capable of positive emotions!" Amy exclaimed.

Tahli snickered, before taking in a breath.

"Come on you two, i'm not made of stone." She said.

The three of us giggled for a moment, before a familiar sound caught our ears way off in the distance. It carried over the forest, and through the trees.

"Dragon." Amy said.

"She's far off. We're alright. For now." I said.